1959 AMC 12 Problem 16

Attempt Problem 16 of the 1959 AMC 12 below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1959 AMC 12 solutions, or check the answer key.

All problems are used with official legal permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

16.

The expression x2−3x+2x2−5x+6÷x2−5x+4x2−7x+12, \frac{x^2-3x+2}{x^2-5x+6}\div \frac{x^2-5x+4}{x^2-7x+12}, when simplified, is:
(x−1)(x−6)(x−3)(x−4)\dfrac{(x-1)(x-6)}{(x-3)(x-4)}
x+3x−3\dfrac{x+3}{x-3}
x+1x−1\dfrac{x+1}{x-1}
11
22
Answer: D
Concepts:rational equationfactoringalgebraic manipulation
Small hint:
Factor all four quadratics completely
Big hint:
Replace division by multiplication by the reciprocal
Solution:
Factoring and multiplying by the reciprocal gives (x−1)(x−2)(x−2)(x−3)⋅(x−3)(x−4)(x−1)(x−4)=1 \begin{aligned} &\frac{(x-1)(x-2)}{(x-2)(x-3)}\\ &\quad{}\cdot \frac{(x-3)(x-4)}{(x-1)(x-4)}=1 \end{aligned} for every value in the domain of the original expression.
Therefore, the correct answer is D.
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